North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["Pete Tallman" <pete_tallman@hotmail.com>]

Gourock 3/4-inch mesh nylon net is horrendously expensive, but it was what I 
could find a few years back. I justified it at the time as a lifetime 
investment to share between cherries and blueberries. Worked great. (My 
birds were going right through the usual garden-store plastic bird netting.)

I found a somewhat more economical netting source this year, nylon 1/2-inch 
mesh that looks like it could do the job -- see the Lee Valley garden tool 
catalog (page 60 item #PA205 and #PA206). Comes in 12-foot width, 12 x 29 is 
$31.50, 12 x 117 is $109. There's also a cheaper 1-1/4 inch mesh, but that's 
probably too big a mesh for bird protection.

I also keep meaning to mention for the folks trying to root pears, Lee 
Valley also offers an interesting-looking air-layer rooting kit ("rooter 
pot"). I wondered if it would by chance work for black raspberries, so I 
ordered a set to try.

I hate those guys -- they are always finding stuff I can't do without.  :-)

Pete Tallman
Longmont, CO
(where it's been entirely too warm so far this year, and the orchard is 
responding. Ure pear is in bloom already!)